1. Field Of The Invention:
This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for testing abrasion resistance of printed surfaces, and more particularly, to an apparatus to simulate abrasion forces on an ink printed and coated carton to predetermine the quality of various inks which can be used on a paperboard carton surface.
2. Description Of The Prior Art:
In the art of printing generally and more particularly in the art of printing paperboard cartons it is often desirable to predetermine how a particular batch of ink will react when the ink is applied or printed on a particular carton and the carton subjected to different conditions of abrasion, in the presence or absence of moisture. Heretofore it has been possible to somewhat pretest inks for this purpose and how a particular carton printed with a particular ink will react to various conditions encountered in the handling of a carton by the use of apparatus that is commonly referred to as a "Sutherland Rub Tester", and which is shown in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 2,734,375, issued Feb. 14, 1956, which disclosure is incorporated herein. Generally, this apparatus seeks to reproduce identical abrasive acts on a sample of a paperboard to be used in a carton and printed with the ink to be tested. The results of the abrasion tests are compared with results obtained with different inks and different samples of paperboard that have been submitted to identical tests. This apparatus provides means for attempting to simulate and reproduce the actual abrasion forces encountered on the test sample. That is, the sample is subjected to the same number of abrasive strokes applied at the same pressure. The apparatus is adjustable for varying the number of abrasive strokes and their pressure as different properties of the sample and the characteristics of the sample to be tested are changed.
However, the apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,734,375 does not employ any means to simulate the flexing of the carton while the surface thereof is being rubbed, scuffed or abraded, and therefore does not supply an accurate simulation of the abrasion forces normally encountered by the printed carton surface during handling and shipping, particularly where the carton contains a product that has a pressure point contact with the carton surface.